Xenobioticinduced immune disregulation

Some drugs such as hydralazine or procainamide may induce lupus like diseases with antinuclear antibodies and proteinuria. D-penicillamine not only causes glomerulopathies, but also myasthenia, poly-myositis or lupus, suggesting that this compound provokes immune disregulation. Gold salts also are capable of inducing various immunopathological disorders such as pneumonitis, anemia, thrombocytopenia and hepatitis.

We shall discuss hydralazine or procainamide-in-duced autoimmunity and heavy metal-induced immu-nopathological disorders because these compounds have been extensively studied using multiple experimental approaches and in several experimental systems, and because it was shown that several mechanisms may contribute to the development of autoim-munity.